, the number one issue for the conservative caucus isthepanamacanal.their idea, roughly speaking, is we need to invade panama and talk the panama canal back because obviously, communists or something. the panama canal and up all night hair on fire fantasies about communists coming up the canal to come get us in the middle of the night, those have been around for a while, in the 1970s and the 1980s. the panama canal was the fast and furious, birth certificate, the president is a secret muslim conspiracy theory of its day. when that panama canal conspiracy theory was lighting up the tin foil hats of the generation ago, it was an ambition politician named ronal reagan who took that issue from the fringe and decide today mainstream it into national mainstream republican politics. he based his presidential campaign in part on this insane idea that the panama canal was basically an american state that we can't let the communists steal this american thing from us. he mainstreamed this paranoid far right fantasy that if we went along with our treaty obligations to let panama run its own canal,

investment funds from wealthy foreigners most of the money through corporations registeredinpanama. someof the most secretive of business laws exist there in panama. does that story prove the president's points, that business leaders don't come by successful initiatives on their own? >> well, i think certainly not, tom. i think the recent polls you've cited have shown that the president's false attacks on mitt romney aren't working right now and the people care about the economy. i want to turn to your point about the context of the president's you didn't build that remark. there was a good article by phil klein this morning saying that the contextually made that comment worse. if you look at the whole speech and what he's arguing, it's that

corporations registeredinpanama. andthen known for tax advantages and unusual banking secrecy. in an interview with abc news this morning, anne romney was asked to respond to thebain attacks and she came out swinging. >> i was beneath the dignity of the office of the president to do something as egregious as that. to attack somebody on that level is i believe beneath his dignity. >> nbc's senior political editor mark murray is here. he joins me now. and mark, fascinating numbers on the polls. we'll put it up there. 47-46. obama 47-41. razor thin race and obama seems to be just brought down by his handling of the economy. can't shake it. >> luke, there are two forces at play which show why the polls pretty much are the same. that this race is essentially tied or deadlocked, however you want to describe it. the economic forces keeping president obama down, but also, the fact that people aren't yet still sold on mitt romney. and these two forces are at play right now which explains why we see president obama up two or three points up in one poll. overall i don't think the race wi

says quote, most of the foreign investors' money came through corporations registeredinpanama. thenknown for tax advantages and unusual banking secrecy. but it didn't matter to romney where the money was coming from, he knew there was little risk to him in starting his investment fund. he was assured by his boss bill bain back in 1984 that starting up bain capital would be a non-risk prospect for romney. ezra klein at the washington post writes, romney would get his old job and salary back plus any raises he would have earned during his absence. and bain promised that if necessary he would craft a cover story saying that romney's return to bain and company was needed because of his value as a consultant. so there was no professional or financial risk. no professional or financial risk. that's the kind of security that's denied to most americans. there's also news today undercutting romney's claim that he left bain back in 1999 to run the salt lake city olympics. >> i had no association with the banishment of bain capital after february of 1999. that's when i left the firm. i'

. the times says quote, most of the foreign investors' money came through corporations registeredinpanama. thenknown for tax advantages and unusual banking secrecy. but it didn't matter to romney where the money was coming from, he kne

the mud, look what happened in latin america with columbiaandpanama, alliesof ours in the free trade agreements. there is no strong foreign policy coming out of the administration. i don't think at the end of the day they want to campaign on foreign policy either, because it's one of weakness. it is why we have so much instability around the world because people don't know where the united states stands. we need to stand up for those who are fighting for their freedom. we need to do what is right by the people of the united states and around the world. >> shannon: you are running for senate. you have a primary august 14 and then hope to go head to head -- moving beyond that. the senate very much in play to a lot of folks. but do you think it's realistic for the g.o.p. to pick up a significant number of seats this is fall? >> i do, for a number of reasons. one, the economy is in such bad shape. it has to do with the policies that have come out from president obama and lock-step liberals that think that government is the answer to all of our problems. when you have a weak foreign polic

registeredinpanamawhich,at the time was notorious for its secretive banking system. so now we've got panama, bahamas, cayman islands switzerland, they may all be nice vacation spots. they're also great places to hide your money. and there is always something new and exotic about mr. romney's past. our next guest has been warning folks since primary season that mitt romney's ties to bain capital and his exotic finances could wind up biting him in the behind. rick tyler is the former spokesman to newt gingrich. he comes to us from washington d.c. rick welcome inside "the war room." >> glad to be here. how are you governor? >> jennifer: i'm doing great thanks. i appreciate you coming on. have you found yourself saying "i told you so" a lot lately? >> no. it is not my nature to say i told you so. >> jennifer: why don't you think more reporters picked up on your warnings about mitt romney's secrecy? >> you know, i had a lot of conversations with a lot of reporters and there are a lot of hard-working reporter